


Just the Right Time

by linksugiecookerneal



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Love Confessions, M/M, Smoking, college rhink, more like idiots to lovers but
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-06
Updated: 2020-01-06
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:33:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,627
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22146487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/linksugiecookerneal/pseuds/linksugiecookerneal
Summary: After the night of the party, Rhett never told Link how he felt. He finally tells him in the absolute dumbest way.
Relationships: Rhett McLaughlin/Link Neal
Comments: 3
Kudos: 48





	Just the Right Time

**Author's Note:**

> This is a sequel, but I also wouldn't call it a sequel. It's a... story in the same universe as Stay with Me, but doesn't happen immediately, it's just kind of later on. 
> 
> Listen I really like shotgunning and I think it's hot and this fic started with that. Anyway, started making it, had a breakdown, bon appetit.

Rhett pulled the flattened pack of Marlboros from his pocket and shook it down. 

_ Last one _ , he counted as he pulled the final cigarette from the pack.

He needed to get to the store before they closed, but he figured he could at least finish his last one before he left. About halfway through, he heard the door open behind him. He turned to see Link making his way toward the picnic table he sat on. 

“Hey, bo,” Link chirped, earning a nod from Rhett. “‘S cold out, why are you smoking outside?”

“Didn’t feel like breaking the rules tonight.” He breathed, releasing a cloud of smoke.

“You know they wouldn’t say anything if they caught you smoking at the window.” 

He nodded, silent. Link must have taken the hint. He sat on the bench, pressing his shoulder against Rhett’s knee. Rhett wasn’t really in the mood to talk. He actually came outside with the intention of being by himself, but he wasn’t going to turn his best friend away, even if he was the reason for his need for solitude. 

His best friend. 

His best friend who he spent every single day with had no idea how he felt about him. He couldn’t recall with great detail when exactly he started feeling this way, but he knew it had been solidified the night of their last high school party. He knew the feelings were there, but being in that bathroom with Link, comforting him, made him realize that his entire heart belonged to his weird, anxious, beautiful best friend. He took a long drag of tobacco, his attention focused on the heat of the smoke in his lungs. 

“You got another one of those, man?” Link snapped his fingers, drawing Rhett from his reverie, his other hand patting his pockets. “I can’t find my pack.”

He shook his head. “Sorry, brother. This is my last. Gotta run to the store after this.” He watched from his periphery as Link eyed the cigarette between his fingers. “Give me a draw, man. I haven’t had a smoke all day.” 

“Can’t you wait? We’ll go in, like, five minutes.” Rhett rolled his eyes. 

“You can blow it in my face for all I care. Least it would be something.”

Rhett snorted. “Yeah, and I could always just shotgun it directly into your mouth, too.”

“I’ll take anything at this point, man.” 

Rhett froze and looked down at Link. He had been kidding. Link hadn’t. 

“Nah, man. I don’t wanna be that close to your mouth with my mouth.” 

“Oh, come on! You mentioned it and if you’re not gonna give me a drag, it’s the least you could do.” 

He considered Link for a moment. After that night at the party, they'd grown a lot closer. Rhett even thought, maybe at one point, that Link felt the same way he did. He knew that he was completely wrong when they got to college and Link started his own thing. Since they didn’t have class together, the only time they spent time together was at night before bed. Link didn’t usually come back before then, anyway. He was more invested in the “full college experience,” and frequently spent time out with new friends from his classes or girls he met through them that went to the all-girls school across the road. What he thought were feelings turned out to be a dependency, and Link was becoming more independent in college. Maybe smoking helped his anxiety more than he let on. 

“Fine, lean up.” He took a long draw from the cigarette and blew it towards Link’s open mouth. 

Link frowned. “It’s not working, man. You gotta get closer.”

He raised an eyebrow at him for a moment before shrugging. He wanted Link to think he was being nonchalant and desperately hoped that Link couldn’t hear how loud his heart was beating. 

“Fine, but I don’t want you to complain if our lips touch.”

He took one last drag off of the Marlboro as he tilted Link’s chin up to him. He flipped the butt away and leaned down, pressing his open mouth against Link’s. He watched as Link closed his eyes and inhaled the smoke greedily. When their lips did inevitably meet, Rhett screwed his eyes shut. On a sudden and stupid whim, he leaned further into his best friend, his tongue darting into Link’s mouth and brushing their tongues together.

Initially, he was shocked that Link didn’t pull away immediately, but what really surprised him was the reaction. Had he actually just whimpered? Was he really reacting  _ positively _ ? White hot tingles ran through Rhett chest and arms as he pulled away. Both of them seemed to be breathing much quicker than they had been a minute ago. As Link pulled away, it felt like the tension was being stretched thinner and thinner. Rhett was sure it would snap at any moment. 

The look on Link’s face almost perfectly resembled that of a baby deer. 

“Link I--.” 

Warm lips crashed against his. He moaned in surprise and wrapped his hand around the back of Link’s neck, holding him in place. Link climbed onto the tabletop, even with him as their tongues battled for dominance. He brushed his thumb over Link’s jaw, then pushed him away to look him in the eye.

“What the fuck was that?” He panted. 

“It’s… it was a kiss.” 

“But… why?” He furrowed his brow. He didn’t want to seem upset, but he was beyond confused. 

“I don’t know! You were just there, and I can’t get you out of my head sometimes!”

He gaped at the shorter man. Link thought he was mad. 

“Don’t worry, it’s not gonna happen again.” Link pulled away, quickly darting off of the table toward the dorm door. 

“Link, wait!” He jumped up, catching up to him easily and grabbing his wrist and turning him on the spot. 

“Let go of me, man.” Link’s eyes glistened, pleading. 

“Only if you’ll stop and freaking talk to me.” Rhett loosened his grip slightly, looking down at their hands. 

“Fine.” He snapped and ripped his arm from Rhett’s grasp. 

Rhett looked up at him, shocked. This amount hostility was so unlike him. He must still think he’d upset him. He had to make him understand. 

“Link, what the hell was that about?” 

Link shrugged, hugging his arms tightly to himself. “I don’t know, man. We’re just so close and sometimes I liked to think that maybe you wanted me in high school the way I wanted you. When we went to the party that night, I was on edge because I wanted to tell you that night, but then you were gone and… that happened. Our relationship felt different after that. Like you thought I was some kind of invalid or a child that needed you to protect me. So I decided not to tell you.” 

Rhett gaped at him. Link did want him. He could have jumped for Joy if he wasn’t still trying to wrap his head around the rest of the thought. That night was the night he realized he loved Link. Had he been overprotective? 

“Link, that night was the night that I realized that I was in love with you,” He drawled.

Link frowned. “Rhett, no. You didn’t. You’re just too attached because you take care of me all the time. You’ve got Florence Nightingale Syndrome or some shit. I’m going inside.” 

Link turned to walk away and Rhett rushed past him, standing between him and the entrance. “How can I prove it to you?” 

“You don’t have to prove anything.” He tried to get by, but Rhett sidestepped in front of him. 

“Link, I didn’t tell you then because I thought we should wait until we got to college. Then when we got here, you made new friends in your own field and started spending time with all of those girls, I figured that maybe you were just leaning on me for support until you felt like you could hold your own. I’ve been letting you go from day one because I didn’t think you wanted me.” 

He rested his hands on Link’s shoulders, begging him to understand, “I’m an idiot. I love you so damn much. Sometimes I lay awake in bed at night because I’m thinking of the future we would never have together. At least until you interrupt me with your snoring.” 

Link rolled his eyes. “I do not snore.” 

“Yes, you do.” Rhett slid his hands down Link’s arms. “But that’s not the point. Point is, I love you and I’ll do anything to prove it to you.” 

Link looked strained. Rhett could tell that he wanted to believe him. His face was pinched in confusion. 

“Can I kiss you, Link?” He asked as he laced both of his large hands into Link’s smaller. 

Link’s eyes shone brightly in the darkness. He bit his lip and gave him a small nod. Rhett let out a deep breath. It felt like a ten ton weight had been lifted off of his chest. He pulled Link by the hands, their lips meeting gently. Link responded in kind, wrapping his arms around Rhett’s shoulders, one hand sliding up into his short hair. Rhett found his own arms wrapped tightly around Link’s waist, holding him tightly against his chest. The kiss was sweet. Full of unspoken desires and all of the love that Rhett could pour into it. After a moment, Link broke the kiss, pressing their foreheads together. 

“I love you. I wish I would have told you sooner.” 

Rhett smiled, cupping Link’s face with both hands, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead, then nose, then lips, “I think this is just the right time.” 

**Author's Note:**

> come find me on Tumblr if you want
> 
> Linksugiecookerneal


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